Driver who killed three unsheltered people in 2021 still has no preliminary hearing

The attorney for a driver who is charged with killing three people and injuring seven others said he is not mentally competent enough to stand trial.

The trial has been delayed multiple times due to Craig Martin Voss’s health issues. Voss drove up on a sidewalk near City College in 2021 where several unsheltered people were staying dry in a tunnel during a rainstorm.

On Thursday, Aug. 17, attorney Kaitlyn McCarthy told San Diego Superior Court Judge Cindy Davis her client has “congestive heart failure.”

McCarthy said Voss is “not mentally competent” to face the charges because of his physical condition and she is seeking a hearing in which a judge will declare him mentally incompetent.

Deputy District Attorney Cally Bright objected to the long delay in the case saying “the case is now two-and-half years old” since Voss struck the 10 people in the rain in a tunnel on B Street west of Park Boulevard on March 15, 2021.

Bright told the judge she would like Voss to be evaluated independently.

Voss has not even had a preliminary hearing. It has been scheduled and re-scheduled over and over because of Voss’ illnesses.

Voss’ attorney asked for a Sept. 28 mental competency trial when Davis suggested one could be scheduled. Instead a status conference on the issue was set for Aug. 31.

Voss has pleaded not guilty to three counts of vehicular manslaughter in the deaths of Randy Ferris, 65, Walter Jones, 61, and Rodney Diffendal, 40. He is also charged with injuring seven other people.

Voss is a former carpenter, a veteran, and previously had a stroke. He has surrendered his driver’s license, and takes numerous medications, according to his lawyer.

Voss, now 74, remains under house arrest in his South Park home.